Adjustable roofing safety apparatus

ABSTRACT

An adjustable roofing safety system is provided which adapted to prevent materials, supplies, tools and workmen performing roofing operations on high-pitched roofs from falling over the edge, protecting both individuals on the roof and individuals who happen to be positioned at levels lower than the edge of the roof from being injured. The apparatus is selectively positionable in both the horizontal and vertical directions as needed as work progresses across the roof surface.

Cross-Reference to Related Applications

This nonprovisional application claims priority to U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application Ser. No. 61/372,808 filed on Aug. 11, 2010, theentire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a roofing safety apparatus.More specifically, the present invention relates to an adjustable andselectively positionable roofing safety apparatus adapted to preventmaterial and personnel from falling over the edge of a roof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Roofing can be a dangerous occupation since most roofs are elevated andare pitched at a large incline. Often tools, materials and even workmenslide down the incline and over the edge. The roof pitch or inclinepresents a challenge to the roofer to not only prevent supplies,materials and tools needed for the job from falling off the roof, butalso to prevent the roofer personally from physically falling off theroof while performing roofing operations.

A roofing bracket, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,691,478,issued to Henderson, Nov. 13, 1928, has been proposed to keep supplieson the roof. The roofing bracket is secured to the roof by fasteningflat strips or plates to the roof's surface. The roofing bracket of the‘478 disclosure is adapted to hold planks or boards to provide a surfaceto rest material thereon and to prevent material from falling over theedge of the roof.

Adjustable roofing jacks, such as the jack disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,113,971, issued to Violet, May 19, 1992, have been proposed for usewith a scaffold to prevent falls and other dangers associated withworking on an elevated, highly-pitched roof. The roofing jack has aframe with a bent portion forming a support for a scaffold. The roofingjack is secured to the surface of the roof using fasteners andsecurement apertures on the frame, which are configured to facilitateremoval of the frame from the roof.

While the prior art, including the references discussed above,contribute to the safety of the roofer, the prior art does not providefor a safety apparatus that can be easily and selectively movable with aroofer as he or she progresses across the roof surface and which may besecured to the roof without piercing the shingles or other coveringmaterial.

In view of the above, it will be apparent to those skilled in the artfrom this disclosure that a need exists for an improved adjustableroofing safety apparatus that may be securely fastened to a roof withminimal damage thereto while, at the same time, may be easilypositionable at a selected location on the roof and readily moved fromone location to another as work on the roof progresses. This inventionaddresses this need in the art as well as other needs, which will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the attached drawings which form a part of thisoriginal disclosure:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an adjustable roofing safety apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of the adjustableroofing safety apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partial, magnified, perspective view of an element of anadjustable roofing safety apparatus according to another embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side view of a scaffold support frame or sled adapted foruse with the adjustable roofing safety apparatus in accordance with anembodiment;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the sled of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a side view of a sliding coupler adapted for use with theadjustable safety apparatus of the instant invention in accordance withanother embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring initially to FIG. 1, an adjustable roofing safety apparatus inaccordance with a first embodiment of the present invention is generallyshown at 1. The adjustable roofing safety apparatus 1 is designed toprevent tools, roofing materials, supplies, and the like and workmenfrom sliding off the roof regardless of the pitch. The apparatus 1 alsoprotects anyone on the ground below the roof from being struck byfalling objects. Importantly, from a safety perspective, apparatus 1provides a safety catch for a roofer. That is, a roofer may be preventedfrom falling off the roof by the apparatus 1 if he should slide down thehigh pitched roof surface and come to rest against it. Moreover, theapparatus 1 discloses marked improvements over the prior art, inasmuchas it is selectively adjustable so the roofer may repeatedly repositionthe apparatus 1 with the progression of the work across the roof surfacein both the horizontal and vertical directions.

The safety apparatus 1 includes a track 2, at least one scaffold supportframe or sled 6, a connecting element or strap 4 having top and bottomends disposed intermediate the track 2 and the scaffold support frame 6operatively interconnecting the two, and a sliding coupler 10 secured tothe top and bottom of strap 4, the operation of which will be describedin greater detail below. The track 2 is adapted to be secured to theroof, preferably near the crown or apex of the roof. The track 2 has alength greater than its width and stretches across the roof. The strap 4is slidably coupled to the track 2 and selectively positionable atvarious locations along its length. The strap 4 attaches to the sled 6and thereby connects the sled 6 to the track 2.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the track 2 is in the form of a ropeor cable and stretches tautly across the roof apex with limited sag. Thetrack 2 includes first and second end portions secured to the crown byfastening members 8, which, by way of example and not of limitation, maybe in the form of eye bolts, bracket plates or other fastening devicessuitable for the application that fasten the respective end portions ofthe track 2 to the roof. The connecting element 4 can be a rope, astrap, a cable, a ratchet strap or can be a strip of flat sheet metal.Use of a ratchet strap or other similar device such as a wench, pulleyor spool, which may also be operated by a hand crank, electric motor orthe like, provides for vertical adjustment of the safety apparatus aswork progresses from the roof apex downwardly toward the edge.Preferably, the strap 4 forms a low profile with the roof surface so asto avoid interference with the roofers’ work activities and to minimizethe tripping hazard. The strap 4 includes the sliding coupler 10 on thetop end and a fastening element 12 at the bottom end. In the embodimentof FIG. 1 and as shown in greater detail in FIG. 3, the sliding coupler10 is a loop having the track 2 running there through. The fasteningelement 12 securely fastens the sled 6 to the strap 4 and can be a weld,adhesive, bolts, etc.

The strap 4 and the sled 6 constitute a catch assembly 14 that is ableto slide along the track 2 to a desired position and cooperate withadjacent catch assemblies that are similarly structured and arranged tosupport scaffolding of conventional lengths used in the constructionfield. Preferably, in the safety apparatus 1, a plurality of catchassemblies 14 are slidably connected to the track 2. The sleds 6 of thecatch assemblies 14 support at least one scaffold or board 16, whichserve as a safety rail to abut debris, tools, materials or even roofers,for example, that slide down the roof. Moreover, in structures whereroofing operations are being performed along long roofs, multiple catchassemblies may be selectively positioned across the roof surface toenable several crews to be on the roof at the same time withoutinterfering with one another.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a scaffold support frame or sled 6 is shown ingreater detail and includes a first end portion 18 adapted to beconnected to the fastening element 12 and a second end portion 20. Thesled is preferably formed from a rigid material such as a flat metalplate bent into a generally L-shaped configuration adapted to support aplank or scaffold. As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 5, the first end portion18 lies on the roof so as to form a low profile with the roof surfaceand preferably has a plurality of apertures 22 in alignment along alength thereof. The apertures 22 allow a roofer to optionally secure thecatch assembly 14 by driving nails, screws or the like through theapertures 22 into the underlying surface. Moreover, the apertures may bestructured and arranged to receive fasteners for securing toe boardsthereto or for securing safety straps worn by members of a roofing crewwhile working on the inclined roof surface. As described above, the sled6 is bent at an angle from the first end portion 18 to form the secondend portion 20, which extends away from the roof surface. The second endportion 20 includes a tongue portion 24 used as a guard to ensure thatthe board 16 does not rise upwardly from the roof surface. Preferably,the sled is dimensioned widthwise to provide stability for the plankingmaterial, and, in practice, it has been found that widths of at leastone foot are suitable for this application. To facilitate slideablemovement of a sled across the roof surface, rollers (not shown) may alsobe positioned between the roof and the sled for ease of movement as workprogresses.

Referring now to FIG. 6, a second embodiment of the safety apparatus 1is shown. In this embodiment, the sliding coupler 10 of the track 2forms a channel 26 underneath. Specifically, the sliding coupler 10 hascurved first and second sides 28, 30 that accept the sides of the track2, which, in this embodiment, is a flat strip of metal having a widththat fits in the channel 26. The sliding coupler 10 optionally includesbearings 32 disposed in the curved portions of the first and secondsides 28, 30 to facilitate sliding. Preferably, a plurality of catchassemblies 14 are attached to respective sliding couplers 10.

The above-described safety apparatus 1 provides a roofer with anapparatus that is repositionable as work progresses. Furthermore, thesafety apparatus 1 can be strategically positioned on the roof so as tobe most likely to catch debris, materials or a roofer and prevent injuryto the roofer or workers below the roof. Thus, the apparatus 1 is acontinuously connected system that is configurable to best suit theneeds of the roofer. That is, whether through the track 2 or throughboards 16, the plurality of catch assemblies 14 are continuouslyconnected. The catch assemblies 14 are optionally not connected byboards 16 at the sled 6 to allow free movement thereof. Furthermore, theapertures 22 can be used to more precisely position the sled 6 on and tosecure it to the roof via a nail or screw, for example.

In understanding the scope of the present invention, the term“comprising” and its derivatives, as used herein, are intended to beopen ended terms that specify the presence of the stated features,elements, components, groups, integers, and/or steps, but do not excludethe presence of other unstated features, elements, components, groups,integers and/or steps. The foregoing also applies to words havingsimilar meanings such as the terms, “including”, “having” and theirderivatives. Also, the terms “part,” “section,” “portion,” “member” or“element” when used in the singular can have the dual meaning of asingle part or a plurality of parts. As used herein to describe thepresent invention, the following directional terms “forward, rearward,above, downward, vertical, horizontal, below and transverse” as well asany other similar directional terms refer to those directions of a roofequipped with the present invention. Accordingly, these terms, asutilized to describe the present invention should be interpretedrelative to a roof equipped with the present invention. Finally, termsof degree such as “substantially”, “about” and “approximately” as usedherein mean a reasonable amount of deviation of the modified term suchthat the end result is not significantly changed. For example, theseterms can be construed as including a deviation of at least ±5% of themodified term if this deviation would not negate the meaning of the wordit modifies.

While only selected embodiments have been chosen to illustrate thepresent invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art fromthis disclosure that various changes and modifications can be madeherein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined inthe appended claims. Furthermore, the foregoing descriptions of theembodiments according to the present invention are provided forillustration only, and not for the purpose of limiting the invention asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An adjustable roofing safety apparatus adapted tobe releasably mounted along an apex of a roof, comprising: a scaffold;at least one frame adapted to support the scaffold; a track memberconfigured to be secured to the roof near the apex thereof; a connectingelement disposed intermediate the scaffold support frame and the trackand being operatively connected thereto; and a coupler adapted toslidably couple the connecting element to the track.
 2. The adjustableroofing safety apparatus of claim 1 wherein the at least one frame isformed of a rigid material such as plate steel.
 3. The adjustableroofing safety apparatus of claim 2 wherein the at least one frame isformed in a generally L-shaped configuration adapted to support thescaffold.
 4. The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 1 whereinthe track member comprises at least one cable extending tautly along theapex of the roof and having first and second end portions securedthereto.
 5. The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 1 whereinthe tack member comprises a flat metal strip having a preselected width.6. The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 6 wherein thecoupler includes first and second sides structured and arranged to forma channel member of substantially the same width as the flat metalstrip.
 7. The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 6 wherein theflat metal strip is adapted to slidably fit in the channel member. 8.The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 1 wherein the couplerincludes bearings disposed in the first and second sides.
 9. Theadjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 1 wherein the at least oneframe includes first and second end portions, the first end portionbeing adapted to lie on the roof, and the second end portion beingconfigured to extend away from the roof for receiving the scaffold. 10.The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 9 wherein the secondend portion includes a tongue portion structured and arranged to preventthe scaffolding from rising upwardly away from the roof surface.
 11. Theadjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus isadapted to be selectively positioned along the surface of the roof inboth a horizontal and in a vertical direction.
 12. The adjustableroofing safety apparatus of claim 1 wherein the connecting elementcomprises a ratchet strap.
 13. The adjustable roofing safety apparatusof claim 1 wherein the connecting element includes means for verticallyadjusting the safety apparatus.
 14. The adjustable roofing safetyapparatus of claim 13 wherein the vertical adjusting means comprises ahand crank.
 15. The adjustable roofing safety apparatus of claim 13wherein the vertical adjusting means comprises an electric motor.